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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. club — for golf
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. drill — army training
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. present — there
  7. bass — low music
  8. rash — a series
  9. present — the time now
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. capital — a city
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. capital — money
  15. drill — the tool
  16. rock — music
  17. bass — the fish
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. rock — a stone
  20. drill — a practice
  21. club — for dancing
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. rash — hasty
  24. club — a group

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com